


Hope

by apolloxbvcky



Category: Captain America (Movies), Marvel Cinematic Universe, The Avengers (Marvel Movies)
Genre: Avengers: Endgame (Movie) Spoilers, Boys Kissing, Bucky Barnes Feels, Bucky Barnes Needs a Hug, Fix-It, Kissing, M/M, Oblivious Steve Rogers, POV Bucky Barnes, Post-Avengers: Endgame (Movie), Steve Rogers Feels
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-04-30
Updated: 2019-04-30
Packaged: 2020-02-10 09:03:29
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,950
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18657271
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/apolloxbvcky/pseuds/apolloxbvcky
Summary: Hope. That was what Bucky Barnes was holding on to. His whole future depended on Steve Roger’s decision, and he hoped the Captain would choose the right one.





	Hope

**Author's Note:**

> i'm not okay with how endgame ended and i honestly needed to fix this

Hope. That was what Bucky Barnes was holding on to. His whole future depended on Steve Roger’s decision, and he hoped the Captain would choose the right one.

 

He was scared. Before getting on the machine, the fucking machine that was going to take him away from him, he had said “Don’t do anything stupid ‘till I get back.” Bucky may not remember everything, but he remembered that. And he knew that what he had to do was say “How can I? You’re taking all the stupid with you.” And then, a hug. Because that was what they had done the last time they had said good bye. The time Bucky left for England, to fight on a war he hadn’t asked to be, ready to kill or be killed. Both Steve and Bucky knew the chances of a normal guy from Brooklyn of surviving the world against the nazis weren’t high. Even less when they were like Bucky, though Steve did not know about that. Not that he needed to. It’d have only complicated things.

 

And then, Bucky said he’d miss him. Because he knew Steve, and what he was thinking about. An all Steve had said was that it was going to be okay. Bucky smiled. Yeah, because being trapped in the future, being a man out of his own time, with little to none memories and no acquaintance, and on top of all, having the UN after you, would be okay. But how could he say that to Steve? To Steve, who had been fighting for him for the last ten years. Steve, who had never ever given up on him. Steve, who stepped out of the ice and his only mission from then on was to protect this planet. Steve deserved to have a happy life. Bucky knew that. If that meant they wouldn’t see each other any more, he was okay. If that meant Steve would leave him and go find the love of his life, it was okay. Whatever Steve decided to choose, would be okay for him.

 

But. He had a little hope that maybe, just maybe… Steve was messing with him. Maybe Steve wasn’t actually going to leave him there. Maybe he would leave the stones, leave the Mjolnir (he could lift the freaking hammer, what the hell?), and come back to them (him).

 

He was hoping he was wrong. But he was sure he wasn’t.

 

That’s why, when Bruce counted back to one and Steve appeared in front of his eyes, he couldn’t believe it. He looked at Sam, smiling to the guy in front of them, and to Bruce, who had nodded and started packing up things, to make sure he wasn’t just imagining things and it was his Stevie who was right there in front of him. When he noticed the lack of confusion in the others’s eyes, he looked back to Steve.

 

And Bucky was still looking at Steve when he jumped to the floor, taking of the white suit to reveal his own, and smiled at him. “You look like you just saw a ghost.” he had whispered, winking at him. Of course he knew Bucky had guessed. If Bucky was the one to know Steve the best, Steve knew Bucky even better (you know, because of all the lack of memory wiping).

 

And then Steve looked at Sam, and with a movement of his head, told him to walk together. Sam obeyed, and when Bucky next realized, they were on a bench in front of the lake, sitting shoulders to shoulders and talking softly.

 

Bucky stood there, not knowing what to do next. Should he go with Sam and Steve? Should he help Bruce? He put his hands on the pockets of his jacket, and shifted the weight of his body from one foot to the other. He bit his lower lip. What were Steve and Sam talking about? Then Sam stood up, and turned back, making eye contact with him. Bucky frowned. Sam’s eyes went to his hands, and Bucky realized he had Steve’s shield on them. Oh. _That’s_ what they were talking about. He looked at Steve, and when he saw his smile, Bucky knew what Sam meant. Looking at him, he nodded, smiling. Sam smiled back, grabbing it tightly, and hugged Steve. Then, he walked back to where Bucky and Bruce were. “He wants to talk to you.” Sam said. Bucky nodded, walking to the bench.

 

When he sat, he looked at the man beside him. The sun reflected on the lake, and that reflection reflected on Steve’s face, making his eyes brighter than the sun, and his hair shiny like gold.

“What are you doing here?” Bucky said. Steve frowned, confused, but with a silly smile on his lips.

“Where else would I be? I put the stones and the hammer back. So here I am. Mission complete.” Steve replied. Bucky looked down at his feet.

 

“Why aren’t you with her?” he asked. Steve sighed, looking at the horizon on the lake. “Well, you see. I was… going to go back. But you already know that.” Bucky nodded, biting his lip again.

 

“I know.”

 

“But when I was leaving the time stone back in the Camp, she saw me.”

“What… do you mean she saw you?”

 

“I guess I made a little too much noise, or maybe I calculated the time wrong, or something, but she was down there when I was putting the stone back.” Steve said, looking at Bucky. The brunet was still looking down. “And she asked if it was really me, or if she was going crazy with so many damn fucking work. Well, she didn’t say that. You know, Peggy never swore.” Bucky nodded. “Hey, Buck? Can you look at me?”

 

The brunet obeyed, looking at Steve’s eyes. They looked down at him tenderly, with a soft smile that was asking for forgiveness.

 

“Listen to my part of the story. Then, you can hate me.” he said. Bucky nodded. “Anyway, Peggy found me, and she asked if it was actually me. So I kind of explained her what had happened, making her swear she was never going to tell anyone. Never.

>> We moved to her office, and she made coffee for both of us. We talked a little. I told her about you, and Nat, and Sam, and how she should make sure that Howard names his son Tony, otherwise he would never forgive me. And I told her she would be so proud of that kid. That all of us are. And then she asked me what was I going to do. And I told her my plan: go back to after I crashed the plane, find her, lay low. Get a new identity, maybe. Get married, love her the way I promised myself I would…”

 

Steve stopped, making Bucky frown. “And?” he asked. Steve smiled.

 

“And she yelled at me.” Bucky deepened his frown.

 

“What?”

 

“She said that I was stupid, an idiot, and so many other adjectives I don’t want to repeat. But you know how they go. She told me that I was too oblivious.” he said, running his hand through his hair, sending it in every direction. Bucky wanted to do the same thing, his hand twitched to do it, but he knew he shouldn’t.

 

“Why?”

 

“She said that I probably never noticed back in our times before of how it was frowned upon, and how it was illegal, but that she knew in the bottom of my heart it wasn’t her who I really loved. I was really confused at that point, and then she made me realize that ever since I found out you were alive, all I’ve ever done is try to save you. From HYDRA, from the UN, from Thanos… It’s always you. Back in 2016, Rumlow threw me off my rhythm by just saying your name, and when Tony, Scott and I went to back to 2012 I had to fight past me… Who by the way was too uptight. Have I always been like that?” Bucky chuckled, nodding. “Wow. I owe an apology to so many people… Anyway. He found me, and I had to fight him, and the only way to make him to beat him was telling him you were alive. It worked, by the way.

>> I guess what I’m trying to say, Buck is that I… I love you. And not in the friendly way. Not really. More in like a, huh… romantic way.”

 

Bucky sucked in his breath. This couldn’t be happening. Not at all. This was some kind of dream, and when he woke up, Steve would be back in the 40s with Peggy, and he would be stuck here with… Sam. Ew.

 

“Bucky? You should really say something, even if it’s not what you think I want to hear…” Steve said, moving his hand on top of Bucky’s leg. Bucky snapped up his head and moved closer to Steve, locking his lips with the blond’s.

 

Steve kissed him back, putting his other hand on his cheek and caressing it. When Bucky broke the kiss, he saw Steve’s cheeks blushed and his lip getting red and swollen. He licked his own lip, which made Steve move closer to kiss him again. And Bucky accepted it gladly. This was probably the best kiss he had had in his whole life.

 

After a few minutes of making out, Bucky decided to push Steve’s chest and look at him. Steve was still blushing, and his hair was even more tangled. He smiled.

 

“I want to say something.” Bucky said. Steve nodded, taking the other’s hand and stroking it with his thumb. “Remember when you found me in that bridge?” Steve nodded. “I recognized you. And that’s why I pulled you off the river, of course. And that’s why I kind of helped you in Romania. I didn’t know what the hell was going on, and I didn’t know many things, like my name or your name or… anything, but I knew something. There was something in my chest telling me that you were trustful, that you wouldn’t hurt me. It was like my body knew you. I think it does. I think it has known you forever, and I think it’ll forevermore. You already know all that, but what you don’t know is that you had broken the control HYDRA had on me before. When they found you on the ice, I was on mission and I was going after some guy I don’t even remember what had done wrong, but I remember being on a cafe, stalking him and the news were on. And they started playing old footage of you. Of us. And I started to remember you. I didn’t get to finish that mission because as soon as HYDRA found out, they brought me back and wiped me again. And that wasn’t the only other time. You’ve been what me human all those years. My only conscious part was attached to you, so I guess that means that I’m my better myself when you’re around.

>> I was really scared that you were going to leave me here, but I couldn’t take that away from you. You deserve to rest and be happy. And if what you wanted was her… I couldn’t say no.”  


“Then I guess we’re lucky, since it’s you what I want.” Steve whispered, kissing Bucky’s knuckles. The brunet smiled, looking down at his legs. “I love you, Buck. I really do.”

  
“I love you too. Thanks for coming back.”

 

“Hey. Don’t thank me, okay? We’ve talked about this. It’s you and I, till the end of the line."


End file.
